A Costly Mistake
by Inkbug
Summary: - Prince Caspian AU - When Peter's pride refuses to fall, it is Edmund who pays the final price. With things collapsing around them, Peter turns to the only people he can trust, Aslan, his family... and Caspian X.
1. Wrong Turns

**Disclaimer: **_Narnia _and everything related to it is the property of C.S. Lewis and Walden Media- I'm just taking a step through the wardrobe at the moment, and everything will be put back in it's place when I'm done... mostly. ;)

**_Special thanks to the lovely chichiris chica_ for giving me a helping hand, and a hearing ear betaing this chapter! :D **

**A Costly Mistake**

_**Chapter One: Wrong Turns**_

The Griffin's wings beat with resounding noise, causing Edmund's heart to thump in his chest as he surveyed the damage below. As a knight of Narnia, and one of its kings he'd seen war. This, though, wasn't so much war as it was a form of genocide. Miraz's hatred for Narnians was so strong, that it almost overpowered the love he had for his own people, evidenced by the bodies of a dozen or so soldiers that littered the cold ground, several feet below him.

With a sick feeling in his stomach, Edmund could no longer look at the destruction below him- instead keeping his eyes trained toward the gate ahead. His siblings were there already, Peter had made it through the gate just as it was closing. Susan, he assumed, was ahead of them both.

The night pressed in around, and the cloud cover rolling in was making it difficult to see into the shadows cast by the large watchtowers that dotted the wall, and that may have been where things spiraled downward.

A sudden whizzing noise filled the air, and then Edmund felt himself plummeting before he even registered something was wrong. The griffin he was riding let loose a pained scream. And then the ground was rushing upwards to meet them, and they were falling through the night. They landed on the ground with a pained thump, if they'd been any higher up the young King knew he would have broken _something. _

'_I'm going to be feeling that one in the morning though…'_

"King Edmund- I beg you to take your leave now." The Griffin gasped slightly, struggling to gain a breath, a difficult task when there was an arrow embedded in one's chest. Even as the Narnian spoke the words Edmund could hear the clomping of soldier boots against the cold stone, the sound growing more ominous with every passing second.

Then, there was a sharp pain towards the back of his skull, leaving Edmund almost seeing stars, before everything faded into darkness, and Edmund sent the last thought reeling through the night. "Peter!"

- x -

To say they had been defeated would have been a horrible understatement, and it was with every moment that Peter realized the gravity of his pride, and what it had cost the Narnians.  
_  
"Peter!"_

At the sound of the familiar voice the young king's head shot up, and from his position on Jas- the horse he'd ridden into battle, he scanned the treetops for his brother and the griffin.

But apart from the wind rustling occasionally through the trees, there was no telltale wing beats, and the griffin carrying his brother did not emerge from the foliage, nor did he hear his brother's footsteps nearby.

Something is wrong.

It wasn't so much a thought as it was a feeling, deep in the pit of his stomach that he'd lost far more than a battle that night. Quickly he thanked Jas for his services and dismounted, proceeding to search for his family on foot.

He found Susan first. She was walking towards the rear of the troupes besides Caspian. Neither was willing to say anything and they were walking in silence together. Caspian's right hand fiddled nervously with the pommel of his sword as he kept pace beside her.

"Susan! Have you seen Edmund?"

She shook her head, her tired eyes filled with puzzlement and something else- worry. "No. He was behind me when we were leaving..."

No, that wasn't true. Susan had been able to leave first- with Caspian, Peter almost hadn't made it out. That though, would have meant...

He felt like he'd been punched in the gut, the growing tension he'd been feeling since the failed attack growing and rising- ready to snap at any given moment.

"He wasn't behind you."

Susan's eyes widened. Realization must have hit her too, because she whirled on Peter, the tiredness gone from her eyes. "You left him! We have to turn around, Peter."

The words stung, but he didn't let her see that. "I didn't know Susan!" Every part of him desperately wanted to turn the party back around- storm the castle all over again to find his brother. He couldn't, so many were hurt, he didn't know if Trumpkin would make it back to the How in his condition.

Taking small steps forward he placed a hand on his sister's shoulder holding her tighter as her body began to shake. "I'll get him back." He whispered. "I promise."

**To Be Continued...**


	2. The Breaking Point

A Costly Mistake

_-Chapter II: In which there are many regrets-_

_-Disclaimer: These wonderful characters are the property of Disney and C.S. Lewis. I'm just playing with somebody else's toys._

_**II**_

Peter hardly comprehended when the remaining troupes arrived at Aslan's How after their long trek through the woods, and he didn't notice until the giant stone pillars were almost upon them.

Lucy had come out almost as soon as their lookout had announced that he could see them off in the distance, and when her brother came in, bedraggled and sore, she instantly wrapped both arms around him in a fierce hug, which he returned automatically, they stood there for a moment before Lucy released him. Her dark eyes scanning the crowds for her other siblings.

He should have known Lucy would pick up on how wrong things were. She found Susan, trailing some distance behind Peter, talking in a low voice with Caspian. Another look-around showed her that Edmund was nowhere in sight.

The youngest queen was not given much time to reflect on this, as a small makeshift stretcher was brought out, and Lucy immediately knelt next to the small form of the dwarf, Trumpkin.

Fumbling for a moment, she quickly withdrew the diamond bottle containing the healing cordial. Within moments, the liquid worked it's magic, healing the shattered bones, and closing bleeding wounds, and the dwarf's eyes opened. Peter missed what the dwarf said to his sister after that- he hadn't been paying that much attention in the first place, beyond making sure their "dear little friend" was all right.

Finally Lucy turned her attention back to her two siblings, "what happened?" She intoned, daring to hope that Edmund could just be trailing behind.

"The raid... ended badly." Susan said, a sigh in her voice, and leaving her harsh 'I told you so' unspoken in the air around them, though she couldn't resist shooting a dark glare in the king's direction.

Lucy watch as the bonds holding her brother's temper almost visibly snap as he whirled on Susan and Caspian.

"It would have worked if you" he pointed at Caspian. "Had just stuck to the plan, instead of swanning off. My brother would still be here."

If Caspian wasn't seething before, he surely was now. "If you'd followed the advice of the Narnian's earlier- your brother would still be here now!"

With that statement, Peter whirled around, facing the king now, his fists clenched and shaking at his sides. "It's your fault you know, not mine. I wasn't the one who's family decided to invade Narnia. You, your father, your uncle. You're all the same! It's your fault!"

Had they not been in the presence of other Narnians- Caspian would have lunged at Peter, however, between Susan's scolding look, and the fact Peter was already retreating into the How, he left it alone.

"Well... I handled that one nicely, didn't I?" The older queen murmured, gazing down at her younger sister.

"It... could have been better." She answered, rather diplomatically diffusing any anger Susan may have had left. "Let's let Peter be for a bit. Then we'll go see if he's all right. And tell me what happened..."

- x -

Peter sat, slumped against the stone table, the cool stone comforting against his back. his legs drawn up to his chest and his forehead resting against his knees. Mindlessly he rubbed his hand over Rhindon's smooth pommel, grateful he'd managed to clear the blade from the blood that had been splattered over it.

Everything was wrong. Ever since they'd found the ruins, things had been wrong. Caspian was right, he should have listened to the advice of the older soldiers. This wasn't the Narnia he'd come to love as High King. It was a far more frightening place.

He pulled his forehead back up, gazing at the stone carving at Aslan, noting, with a mild sense of surprise, that even the statue was frowning at him. _Great... even statues seem to hate me now. Where -is- Aslan when you need him? _He was always there for us before.

He didn't realize he was crying until he felt a couple of wet droplets splattering against his arms, rubbing his eyes furiously with the heel of his hand, he felt rather foolish and had anyone else been in the tomb he would have made more of an attempt to hold himself together.

Peter's mind wandered back to the row he'd had with Caspian and Susan earlier, and he realized that he'd already lost it before. So it wouldn't really matter if anyone actually saw him. The only people, he recollected vaguely- he could remember seeing him cry (outside of his family of course) was Oreius.

It had been that time when he was still training them in unarmed combat, and in a rather good move , Edmund had flipped Peter, however- he'd been caught off guard and landed poorly, and he'd broken his arm in the process. Since he'd never broken a bone before the pain had startled him, he'd put up a great fuss when the healers had tried to set it. Though he had apologized frequently afterward, Edmund still teased Peter about that, even back in Finchly.

The memory brought a fresh wave of emotion forward. Sorrow, the sorrow that had been there from the moment he'd realized his brother was still in Miraz's castle. Along with anger. Anger at himself for his inability to lead, anger at Caspian, and though he'd never admit it out loud. Anger at Aslan for allowing his brother to be taken again.

A noise from behind him caused the king to jump, and his hand tightened around Rhindon's hilt, only to relax for a moment when he realized that, it was only Nikabrik.

"Your majesty." The gesture was meant to be a polite one, though coming from the sneering little dwarf, it seemed more of a mockery than something polite.

Peter responded to the dwarf with a curt nod, and for a moment there was a pregnant, awkward pause until Nikabrik spoke again.

"Doesn't seem to me like you lot are doing us much good."

He would have glowered, or made some attempt to defend himself; but the dwarf didn't give him much of a chance to speak. "I don't mean just you. All of you. Caspian included. High Kings? Bunch of kids are more like it. You couldn't even manage the army for one simple raid."

Peter bristled, but said nothing. He was right, in a way. They _were _kids. Or grown-ups in the bodies of children.

"But, what if I knew of a way you could get rid of Miraz… easily. A great power, that even Aslan had a hard time stopping?"

Peter's mind was a whirlwind. A power that even Aslan had trouble stopping? Such a thing was almost unheard of… unless… he couldn't think straight, and had he been able to, he would have seen the dark shadows moving slowly in the tomb's dark corner.

_- To Be Continued - _

**Author's Notes: **

Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews on the previous chapter; and I hope you enjoy this one as well.

For those of you worried that I'll either neglect the other characters or stick too close to the movie's plotline, don't worry. I wouldn't do that to you. From this point on, the story takes a rather different turn.

Enjoy, read, and review!


	3. Lightblinde

**Disclaimer: **_Alas- I don't own the Chronicles of Narnia, they're the property of C.S. Lewis, and Walden Media. I'm just playing with somebody else's toys. _

_****Important**: I've gone back and rewritten the first chapter- and I'd love it if you'd go check it out!**  
_

**A Costly Mistake**  
Chapter Three_: Lightblinde_

Peter found himself able to move again, and as he did his hand flew to Rhindon and he heard himself shouting as he did so. Nickabrick stood there, surprise etched on his face for a moment, before he leaped backwards.

His distraction from the dwarf and the hag however, provided the Werewolf with an opening and the Fell Beast lunged for him. It's jaws were pulled back into a vicious snarl, and Peter's vision was soon obscured by the mass of dark fur as pain raced across his side. Rhindon clattered to the ground as he reached up with both hands to grab the Werewolf by the shoulders in an attempt to keep the creature's jaws from reaching at his throat.

He could hear footsteps now, heavy boots and two pairs smaller feet. One had to be Caspian, as they were undoubtedly human. (Hooves made a decidedly different sound.) The other pairs could just have easily been his sister, or even a dwarf.

With no time to dwell, and no time to see- Peter gathered up all his strength and flung the Werewolf away from him. Where it crashed into a corner of the stone table with a pained yelp. As Peter turned to face the Hag and the dwarf, the air was punctuated by another scream, feminine and young. His heart leapt into his throat, Lucy!

He turned towards the tunneling entrance, and it was all he could do to keep himself from moving. Nickabrick was smaller than the young queen, and had yanked the girl down by her long hair and poised the blade of the knife precariously over her throat, daring Peter to take action against him.

Peter froze in his tracks, but in the momentary lull of activity, the Hag brought the shattered remnant of the wand into the stony earth. Black magic filled the room as an icy numbness spread throughout Peter's entire body. Numbing the pain, the tiredness, and muddling thoughts as ice stretched up one wall, and a hazy figure appeared from behind the tinted veil, beckoning all present towards her pale figure.

The silent spell, brought on by shock was broken by Caspian. The exiled prince lunged forward, the weight of his body crushing into Nikabrik's as he wrenched the away dagger from the dwarf's hands. The dwarf let go of the young Queen's hair, and Lucy fell forward, kneeling against the pavement for a moment until she regained her balance and brought herself up, her dagger in he hand.

Moment's later, with Lucy's attention diverted in horror to the Witch, frozen behind a wall of ice- Caspian pulled his sword from the dwarf's body, and it crumpled to the ground. For a moment. Peter met Caspian's eyes, and the look of gratitude had begun to close the rift. Not all the way, but the mending process between the two had started.

The hag however, was not one to let herself be forgotten. She knelt before the frozen Queen, the fabric of her dress whispering across the floor as she did so. In response, the Witch nodded her head, a slow smirk inching it's way across the woman's face.

Having inched his way toward Peter, Caspian inclined his head in the older boy's direction, eyes wide. "That isn't, who I think it is... is it?"

Despite the situation, Peter couldn't help but give a forced smile. "Well, who else could it be?

"What clever children. It's hard to believe I was imprisoned for so long because of a child like you. Don't you think that I'll be defeated so easily this time _little king._" She echoed, lips curled into a vicious snarl.

Again- the room exploded into motion. The Hag wasn't to let herself be forgotten that easily, and she sprung upwards with a grace and agility that shocked the rooms occupants. The force of her spring sent her careening into Peter's wounded side, breathless and off balance Peter teetered momentarily- only to crash into the wall of ice. There was a horrifying moment of silence, before the ice wall shattered.

x -

Edmund had no way of knowing how long he'd been out. It could have been hours, or mere minutes, even days. It took his eyes mere moments to adjust to his dim surroundings. What little light filled the room came from a small opening just above the heavy door, and he could see the head of a guard stationed above him.

'_Just fantastic. I hate places like this.' _Every time he and his brother had wound up in dungeons it... hadn't gone so well. A greater portion of his first visit to Narnia had been trapped in the White Witch's icy shook his head to clear his thoughts, no use dwelling on the past, as it often times dredged up memories that he'd rather leave buried. Instead, he tried to force himself to focus on the situation at hand.

What had gone wrong? That was the first question. Their plan may not have been the best of his brothers ideas- but Peter hadn't been himself since they left Narnia the first time either. It shouldn't have ended the way it had. Most of the party that left with them had been killed by Miraz's archers in the final surge. They'd had time to get out. So what had happened? And how was he supposed to get himself out of this mess?

As he was in the process of mulling these bits of information over, the world around Edmund exploded into an icy light, and he felt his breath hitch.

She was standing in front of him, pale skin stretched tightly over a gaunt face, and ice-blue fur dress spilling down over her body. Just the way she'd appeared to him so many times in his nightmares.

"Dear one." Her voice cooed mirthlessly as she loomed over Edmund. "After all these years, I'm finally free. Who would have thought that your brother would be the one to release me?"

_**To Be Continued... **_

**Authors Note: **UGH! I'm so sorry that I wasn't able to update this in a more timely fashion! Seven months? I'm really sorry guys. This chapter was a killer to write, and I was lacking in time and motivation. I've gone back and edited chapters 1-2 though. Hopefully they're a little bit better than before! Anyway, to those still reading this- thanks in advance! :D


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